<article><a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=Vokal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vokal</a>, a peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing platform for India’s non-English Internet users, on Thursday said it has raised $5 million in a Series A round of funding lead by China&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=Shunwei Capital" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shunwei Capital</a>, and new investor <a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=500 startups" target="_blank" rel="noopener">500 startups</a>.</article>

<a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=Vokal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vokal</a>, a peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing platform for India’s non-English Internet users, on Thursday said it has raised $5 million in a Series A round of funding lead by China&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=Shunwei Capital" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shunwei Capital</a>, and new investor <a href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/?s=500 startups" target="_blank" rel="noopener">500 startups</a>.
The financing round also saw participation from existing investors Accel India and Blume Ventures, it said in a statement.
Aprameya Radhakrishna, co-founder and CEO, Vokal said, &#8220;Anyone who doesn’t know English in India has a huge problem of accessing relevant answers to their questions. Their Internet experience is poor with a dearth of meaningful content. We’re building a peer-to-peer content network that can cater to their information &amp; knowledge needs.&#8221;
On the talent front, Radhakrishna said, &#8220;We are 35 people and will keep it a tight team for the foreseeable future, not exceeding 50.&#8221;
&#8220;Language diversity is an Indian problem and Vokal is building India-specific solutions to cater to the information and knowledge needs for the non-English users. We are happy to support Vokal’s mission of creating a destination for the vernacular audience. The market is expected to balloon to 550+ million users over the next couple of years,&#8221; Anand Daniel, Partner, Accel Partners added.
The startup had previously raised $2 million from Accel and Blume Ventures.
Vokal is a few months old and already boasts of 200000+ questions with 1000s of questions pouring in everyday on varied topics. It also has a live video streaming feature where experts share their knowledge with users.
Vokal is currently available in Hindi and is launching in multiple languages in the next few months, the statement added.
Mayank Bidawatka, co-founder, Vokal said, “India is one of the few countries with such a large language diversity. The Indian vernacular segment is poised to be almost twice the size of the United States. Their Internet experience is broken with basic translation widgets available as solutions for their information and knowledge needs. We are creating a product grounds-up that they can use everyday.&#8221;
Beijing-based Shunwei Capital is a venture capital fund focused primarily on early- to mid-stage investments in China&#8217;s internet industry. Founded in 2011 by Tuck Lye Koh and Lei Jun, the firm seeks to invest in the technology, media, telecommunications, high technology, new media, games, internet finance, and rural area internet sectors.
Shunwei has increased its exposure in India in the past few years. It led a $6.25 million (Rs 43 crore) funding round for Pune-based online lending startup LoanTap, and participated in a $30 million Series B round raised by Cheche365.com, an auto insurance search engine, in November last year that was led by China Capital Group Ltd. A month before that, Shunwei along with Xiaomi Technologies led an $8 million Series A round for Bangalore-based microlending platform KrazyBee.
Shunwei&#8217;s other India investments include mobile gaming firm Mech Mocha, online marketplace to buy and sell second-hand cars Truebil, and Chushou TV, a mobile video live streaming platform specialised in games.
Commenting on the Vokal deal, Tuck Lye Koh, Partner and CEO, Shunwei Capital said, “India is a large market and the language Internet users are underserved today. We are bullish on Vokal’s ability to create an information and knowledge platform to cater to this segment of users.&#8221;

Vokal is currently available in Hindi and is launching in multiple languages in the next few months.

India: Vernacular platform Vokal raises $5m from China's Shunwei, 500 Startups

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India: Vernacular platform Vokal raises $5m from China's Shunwei, 500 Startups

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